The highest-seeded Auburn males’s basketball group defeated Alabama State within the opening spherical of the NCAA Division I males’s basketball event.
The Tigers then defeated Creighton within the second spherical on Saturday to advance to the Candy 16. However earlier than the SEC powerhouse’s run in March Insanity tipped off, Auburn nice Charles Barkley voiced his assist for one of many group’s present stars.
Barkley, who’s offering commentary throughout broadcasts of event video games, believes Johni Broome would surpass him in Auburn lore if he can lead the Tigers to their first nationwide championship.
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Former NBA participant and Auburn alum Charles Barkley enters Neville Enviornment by the loading dock previous to a recreation between Oklahoma Sooners and Auburn Tigers on February 4, 2025 in Auburn, Alabama. (Stew Milne/Getty Pictures)
“If he can end the journey, I might say he is (Broome) the best participant in Auburn basketball historical past,” Barkley stated throughout Thursday’s telecast. “I really imply that. What he is performed for this system, him and Coach (Bruce) Pearl and people guys, has been unimaginable. But when they might win a nationwide championship, pay attention man, it might be nice.
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Barkley then pointed to Auburn’s look within the 2019 Last 4, declaring it this system’s greatest season so far.
Mar 22, 2025; Lexington, KY, USA; Auburn Tigers ahead Johni Broome (4) handles the ball through the second half in opposition to the Creighton Bluejays within the second spherical to the NCAA Match at Rupp Enviornment. (Aaron Doster-Imagn Pictures)
“And I might say this, I stated after they made it to the Last 4 a number of years in the past, that is the best season in Auburn basketball historical past. If he is capable of win a championship, I would say he is the best participant in Auburn basketball historical past. … He is higher than me in faculty.”
Auburn confronted some doubt main as much as this yr’s event because of the group’s struggles late within the common season. The Tigers dropped back-to-back video games to Texas A&M and Alabama earlier this month.
The March Insanity brand is pictured at Amica Mutual Pavillion throughout Follow Day forward of the NCAA Males’s Basketball Match on March 19, 2025 in Windfall, Rhode Island. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Pictures)
Tennessee outlasted Auburn within the SEC Match semifinal. The Volunteers in the end fell to Florida within the SEC Match championship recreation.
Barkley pointed to the standard of the opponents who defeated Auburn. “They did not lose to Windfall,” he stated. “They misplaced to 3 faculties that had been ranked within the high 10-to-15. And pay attention, no disrespect to Windfall. Do not be blowing up. … They misplaced to Alabama on the buzzer, and so they’re a No. 2 or 3 seed. That is why I am not involved. They misplaced to 3 groups that is within the high 15 of the nation.”
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Auburn will tackle the fifth-seeded Michigan Wolverines within the Candy 16 on March 28 in Atlanta.
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